Kayaker Hilgertová ends professional career aged 49

ČTK |

20 October 2017

Prague, Oct 19 (CTK) - Czech kayaker Stepanka Hilgertova, a double Olympic winner in water slalom, ends her professional sport career at the age of 49 years, she has said in an interview with the Czech Olympic Committee's website.

Her job contract in the Dukla sport club will expire at the end of October. She said she would like to keep competing on an amateur level.

Hilgertova will start working in the Czech National Bank (CNB), in the section of educational and social events, in November.

She will be training as an amateur athlete.

"Despite that I would not like to present this as the end of my career though it might be the end from a certain point of view," she told the czechteam.info server.

Hilgertova started at six Olympic Games from Barcelona in 1992 to London in 2012. She won gold medals at the Summer Olympics in Atlanta in 1996 and in Sydney four years later.

She gained the World Cup title twice, in 1992 and 1998. She also won 15 medals at the European Championships, including seven golds.

In the spring, Hilgertova did not qualify for the national team to take part in top sport events. However, she competed as a substitute at the European Championship where she failed in the qualification.

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